Laundry and Spaghetti Dinners
by mermidchick
Summary: "Kurt, have you ever babysat a four-year-old before? Or any age group for that matter?"


Kurt was finishing algebra homework in his room on a Thursday night when his phone rang loudly. He looked at his phone in surprise. It was a little late for anyone to be calling. He picked it up and glanced at the screen. He answered quickly when he saw it was Blaine.

"Evening, handsome."

"Kurt, you're going to hate me."

Kurt's brows furrowed in confusion.

"Now why would I do that, silly?"

"Because I can't make it for our movie night tomorrow."

"Why? What happened? Is everything ok?"

He could hear Blaine actually chuckle on the other end of the line before speaking.

"No, Kurt, it's nothing like that. Nothing's wrong. I just completely and totally forgot that I promised my aunt I would babysit tomorrow night."

"Babysit?" Kurt repeated. "I didn't know you babysat."

"I haven't in a while, not with getting involved with the Warblers and now the Glee Club."

Kurt could hear a tiny bit of satisfaction coming from Blaine's voice when he mentioned the Glee club. He smiled inwardly, and listened as Blaine continued to speak.

"But I guess she's going to this business meeting/party thing, and it's supposed to go real late, and she couldn't find anyone else.."

"So you jumped in." Gentleman to the end.

"Well, it had been a while since I had seen them, and we actually planned this weeks ago, I'm really sorry I didn't remember sooner, Kurt."

He sounded genuinely sorry about having to cancel, even if their aforementioned "date" was really more a casual hangout than an official "let's get dinner and a movie date."

"It's not that big of a deal, Blaine. It's not like we don't hang out other times." Truth be told, now that Blaine was at Mckinley full time, Kurt wasn't nearly as concerned about plans that had to be moved or pushed back for a while. Maybe if Blaine was still at Dalton, and maybe if they hadn't been dating as long as they have, Kurt would be concerned, or at the very least, a little miffed. Kurt knew this about himself. But now that they _had _been dating for a while, and now that Blaine _had_ transferred, Kurt didn't feel nearly as stressed for plans to follow through.

Or maybe he was just becoming more flexible with his time.

"Yeah, it is a big deal, because I really wanted to see you, and I know it totally bums you out whenever things don't go the way they should, and I don't want you to feel like I'm just ditching you or giving you the cold shoulder because my baby cousin can't spend the night by herself…"

Kurt actually laughed out loud. "Blaine, I may not know much about kids, but I do know that it is perfectly acceptable for a baby cousin to not be able to spend the night by herself. And I would be ashamed of you for even thinking that it wouldn't be."

There was a pause before he heard Blaine speak. "So you're not mad at me? I'm not a completely horrible boyfriend?"

Kurt smiled. "No, Blaine Anderson, you are not. In fact, you are definitely one of the best boyfriends in the world."

"Well, you know, I just have to try my hardest to keep up with _you._"

They hadn't been dating long enough for _that_ to get old just yet.

Kurt smiled and chuckled again to himself. "So how old is she anyway? And she better be good-looking if she's stealing you away from me."

"She just turned four, and she is _definitely_ going to be breaking some hearts in a few years."

They both laughed quietly, and a comfortable silence followed. Then Blaine spoke.

"I do wish I could've seen you though."

"It was just going to be movies and pizza at my house Blaine, hardly an exciting date."

"Hey, I _live_ for your movie nights. You have the most exquisite taste in films."

"Well, what if I came over and babysat with you?"

It was as if the words had jumped out of his lips like a fish out of water. Kurt hadn't really been thinking about babysitting with Blaine before, but the idea didn't completely repulse him now that he was.

Blaine, however, seemed to think otherwise.

"You... you really want to?"

"Oh come on, Blaine, how bad could it be?" Kurt swung his chair as he spoke so he was facing away from the desk. "We put a movie in, feed her some chicken nuggets, put her to bed and we have the evening to ourselves."

Blaine laughed this time, loudly. "Kurt, have you ever babysat a four-year-old before? Or any age group for that matter?"

"I….. have been around kids before, yes."

"But have you ever had to watch them? Had anyone under your care for several hours?"

Kurt swung back and forth on his chair a little, legs crossed, fingers tapping on his knee. He twisted from side to side, his chair squeaking underneath him. He pursed his lips before finally saying: "No, not really."

It was hard to mistake the amusement in Blaine's voice. "And you want to try spending an entire evening with a four-year-old? A four-year-old _girl _on top of that?"

"Oh come on, how bad can it really be?" Kurt huffed. "What's so hard about babysitting girls? And why is it different from boys?"

"You're a boy, you already have that advantage of growing up as one."

"If we're talking childhoods here, Blaine, I think you should know my childhood wouldn't not qualify as "typical American boy."

He heard Blaine chuckle again. "Alright, if you say so. I'll give you the directions to my aunt's house tomorrow. She actually lives pretty close to your area."

"Wait, is your aunt ok with it? You should check to make sure she doesn't mind."

"Oh, she told me before she doesn't mind if I have friends over."

Kurt blinked. "Blaine, if you had told me that before, this whole conversation could've gone much faster."

There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

"…I forgot?"

The door opened seconds after Kurt rang the bell. Blaine's face appeared, surprised. He was wearing jeans and a forest green v-neck. There was a blue kitchen towel draped over his shoulder. "Hey!" He said, pushing the screen open so Kurt could walk in. He glanced at his watch. "You're early. It's only 4'o'clock. My aunt already left though."

Kurt quickly scanned Blaine over before speaking. He was barefoot, the hem of his jeans rolled up a couple of times. He could see splashes of water towards the hem of Blaine's shirt. He looked rushed and occupied but very laid-back at the same time. Without quite knowing why, Kurt found himself smiling.

"Well, I finished my homework early, and I had nothing better to do, so I thought I'd just drop on by."

Blaine blushed, dropping his eyes to the floor for a second before looking back up at Kurt and smiling. "Well, I wasn't quite prepared for you just yet…."

Kurt glanced over to where Blaine gestured. The kitchen was visible from the front door, and Kurt could see a basket of clothes resting on the dining table. Two more were stacked on top of each other on the floor. He could see a French-door partition opened up to reveal a washer and dryer on the far side of the room.

He looked back at Blaine with a raised eyebrow. "She hired you for laundry too?"

Blaine blushed again, sticking his hands in his pockets. "I was just.. trying to help. My aunt is a single mom and she works really hard, and I just know she's not going to get a chance until, like, Sunday, so I just usually just try to get a head start before she comes home," Blaine rambled, looking more and more sheepish as he spoke.

Kurt just smirked at him and walked over to the table so he could set his bag down. "Well aren't you just the perfect babysitter? Don't tell me you were doing the dishes too." He glanced up and down, motioning to the towel and Blaine's shirt.

Blaine let out a little laugh, taking the towel off his shoulder and held it up. "Take a wild guess."

Kurt was already on his way to the kitchen when he saw the sink full of suds and water, and the still-wet dishes drying on the rack beside it. He turned back to face Blaine.

There was a light fluttering feeling in his chest, and suddenly the sight of Blaine standing there, barefoot in jeans and a t-shirt, dish towel in his hands, was enough to make his heart swell. Blaine was still smiling that ridiculously adorable yet charming grin of his. The idea of Blaine doing the dishes and folding laundry was so endearing. And he couldn't figure out just why.

"Is there anything else you were trying to accomplish before I got here? Any more house-keeping to catch up on?"

Blaine chuckled too, visibly relaxing under Kurt's playful teasing. "Well, it's not my fault someone simply _had _to show up early and ruin all my fantastic plans."

"Well, what can I say? I'm just full of surprises."

Kurt smirked and shrugged his shoulders innocently, ignoring Blaine shaking his head in mirth, and instead snuck a glance around the kitchen. The windows were thrown open, late-afternoon sun streaming though. The counters were a light brown granite-type, and all the appliances were gleaming stainless steel. Another dish towel hung from the oven, blue, like the one in Blaine's hands at the moment, which the shorter boy tossed on to the counter and strode up next to Kurt, wrapping his arms around Kurt's waist. "Liking the décor, are we?"

"Little too Gordon-Ramsey for my tastes, but I don't live here, so I'll survive."

Blaine gave a little smile then, and dipped his head in for a quick kiss. "You're adorable."

"I'm so glad you take my 'exquisite taste' so seriously." Kurt put his hand to his chest in mock-annoyance. "I'm offended," he stated dramatically.

Blaine leaned his face in a little closer. "I'm sorry, _pumpkin_," he drawled right next to Kurt's ear, barely a whisper. "Anyway I can make it up to you?"

Kurt could've admonished Blaine for calling him "pumpkin," of all pet names, if it wasn't for the fact that Blaine's warm breath was ghosting over his neck, that he could _feel_ the heat of Blaine's lips so close to his skin, and Blaine's hands were pressing right against Kurt's back, pulling him in even closer. His brain scrambled to say something, anything, through the haze that was now his mind.

" Where's your cousin?"

Blaine didn't move from his spot so close to Kurt's neck. "She's playing in her room. We should have a few more-"

There was a loud _thump ,_the sound of a door banging open, and then the sound of more thumping in quick succession down the hall until Blaine and Kurt had barely enough time to pull away from each other before a tiny girl of four years old came running into the kitchen. "_Blaine_." She said emphatically, like she had something extremely important to say. She stopped abruptly, however, when she finally rounded the corner and saw Kurt standing there. She was extremely tiny, barely coming up just above Blaine's knee. Her wispy brown hair hung just above her shoulders. She was wearing a purple Tinkerbell shirt, with a little ruffle on the bottom, and blue jeans underneath. In her hands was a little glitter wand.

"Hey there, sweetie." Blaine went to scoop her up in his arms, easily situating her on his hip. "Bella, there's someone I'd like you to meet. This is Kurt."

Kurt hadn't been around children very much, it was true. He wasn't one for wiping snot off kids noses or changing diapers. He probably wouldn't be able to handle all the messes and the constant house-cleaning he'd have to do. Kurt himself would be more likely to throw the temper tantrum, or at least he thought. But the little child in Blaine's arms didn't seem very aggressive, and Kurt could see no snot on her face, so he decided to let his previous assumptions slide for the moment.

Bella, suddenly overcome with shyness, responded by burying her face into Blaine's neck, hiding her face in his shoulder. But Kurt could catch just a hint of a smile.

"Oh come on, you can't be shy now!" Blaine reproached teasingly. "Remember? I told you about him. He's going to hang out with us today."

Bella lifted her head up cautiously. She looked at Kurt again, and this time he smiled back at her. "Hi," he said. "I like your shirt. Is that Tinkerbell?" He asked kindly.

Bella paused for a moment, then nodded against Blaine's shoulder. She seemed interested. At least she was responding. Kurt was encouraged by that. He continued.

"You know, Peter Pan used to be one of my favorite movies. Have you seen Peter Pan before?"

Bella nodded again. There was a spark of interest again in her big brown eyes. He was beginning to feel that the Bella who had come running down the hall not two minutes prior was slowly returning to the surface.

"Maybe later on tonight we could watch it together? Does that sound good?"

The little girl nodded a third time, and straightened up a little. Her hands still rested on Blaine's shoulders though. She looked at Blaine and said something. Kurt blinked. He had no idea what she had just said. He didn't catch a word of it.

"What was that?" Blaine asked.

Bella repeated it again, louder.

Blaine's eyes went wide. "Oh, you mean _angel voice_, sweetie."

"That's what I said, _Blaine_."

Kurt raised an eyebrow, a tiny grin forming. "Angel voice?"

Bella, like most small children, didn't always pronounce everything with crystal-clear clarity. In fact, Kurt was having a difficult time understanding her at all. It wasn't that she was just babbling; it had all the inflections and rhythm to make it sound like a complete sentence. But everything was slightly slurred and fuzzy around the edges. She didn't pronounce the 'y' sound at all. Her _th_ sounds were more like _duh_ sounds, and her _L_ sounds were more like _W_ sounds. So "the" was "duh" and "Blaine" was:

" Bwaine?"

Blaine let out a nervous laugh, that embarrassed look coming back again. "Ah, yes, this is the one with the angle voice." His face was bright red. He didn't quite look at Kurt.

Bella faced Kurt again. "Will you fing to me tonight? 'Fore I go to bed?"

"Ah, now, Bella, let's not go asking Kurt to do things if he doesn't want-"

"I'd love to sing to you, Bella." Kurt cut in. He had caught that at the very least. "It would be my honor." He said gracefully, even adding a tiny bow and a sweeping gesture with his arm. This made Bella giggle.

Blaine tilted his head at Kurt, looking apologetic. "Kurt, really, you don't have to."

"Oh, no, _Bwaine_, I simply must. I don't think Bella will take no for an answer, will you, Bella?"

Bella shook her head, former shyness gone as a full on grin now brightened up her face.  
>"Song! Song! Song!" She chanted happily.<p>

Kurt looked at Blaine. "I think we have our answer, _pumpkin_."

He was being merciless, and he knew it. It was just too easy to tease Blaine when he had a child in his arms who couldn't quite pronounce her _L_ sounds. Blaine looked at Kurt, then at Bella, then at Kurt again before letting out an exasperated sound and rolling his eyes.

"What am I going to do with you two, huh?" He asked Bella, wiggling his nose at her. This set her off in a fit of giggles. "It seems I have been out-voted."

Bella wiggled in Blaine's arms. "Bwaine, you promised you'd come pway with me upstairs. You haff to safe the princess from deh evil witch!"

Kurt repressed another urge to giggle at Bella's speech. She was just _too freaking adorable_.

"Sweetie, I told you after I finish the dishes and put in another load of laundry I'd come and play with you." Blaine spoke as he put his hands underneath Bella's arms to lift her off his hip. Bella automatically unwrapped her legs from his waist as he carefully set her down. It was a practiced, careful move, and it made Kurt wonder if Blaine had done a lot more babysitting than he let on.

Bella looked up at him with big eyes. "And den you'll come and pway with me?"

Blaine nodded. "Yep. Now go play, and Kurt and I will be there in a minute."

Bella's eyes went wide. "Durt will pway too?" This idea had not previously been considered, it seemed. Kurt couldn't tell if she liked the idea or loathed it. And now he was Durt, apparently.

"If he wants to, yes." Blaine answered.

Any reservations Kurt thought Bella might have disappeared when the tiny child grabbed Kurt by the hand and looked up at him.

"Will you come pway wif me now? Pwease pwease pwease?"

By the end of her plea she was tugging fiercely on Kurt's hand, and he was actually surprised when he had to pull back just to keep from being forcibly dragged out of the kitchen. He glanced up at Blaine, bracing himself against the counter. "She's four years old; how can she be this strong?" He asked in a stage whisper, smiling amazed, if not shocked, smile.

Blaine chuckled. "Never underestimate a small child when they want something."

"Well-" Kurt was cut off by another tug from Bella. "Come on, Durt!"

He laughed. "Ok, ok! Just a minute." He faced Blaine.

"Why don't you finish down here and you can meet us later?"

Blaine raised a cautious eyebrow. "You sure you'll be ok? I won't be too long here."

Kurt tilted his head to the side as if to say _please. _"She's a four year old girl, Blaine. How bad can she be?"

Bella held Kurt's hand the entire way down the hall until they reached her bedroom. The house was relatively small, but nicely spaced. The end of the hall was almost completely out of sight of the kitchen. When they finally reached her room, Bella opened the door, and Kurt could see her bedroom for the first time. There was a small wooden bed in the corner, just Bella's size, that had a tiny fence-like partition on one side, where the pillow was. _That must be to keep from falling out at night_, Kurt thought. There was a mess of blankets lying on top of it, and Kurt even caught what looked like a _Finding Nemo_ blanket peeking out under another.

Bella dragged Kurt in, and now he could see a dresser in the corner, several drawers open, and clothes strewn about and clumped around the area. _Looks like someone dresses herself,_ he thought amusedly. Now that he was inside, he could see a small bookshelf filled with books and small toys on one wall; an open toy chest sat next to it. A mixture of toys and clothes were all around the floor, but there was a large space in the middle of the carpet that Bella dragged Kurt to and had him sit down. All her previous bashfulness was gone.

" Fee my monkey?" She was already running to her bed before Kurt could respond. Which was ok, because Kurt wasn't quite sure what she said. Comprehension dawned on him when she held up a fluffy monkey from the bed. "Oh! Yes, that's a very lovely monkey."

She walked back and held it out to Kurt. "You can old im if you ahnt."

"Ok." Kurt was almost wishing he hadn't left Blaine back in the kitchen. He was pretty sure Bella had just told him he could _scold Dim if you taunt_. Was the monkey's name Dim? And why would he want to scold him? Was he being bad? Was Bella into the whole over-protective Mom thing? Was Bella's mom over-protective and she was now projecting those emotions on her innocent stuffed animals? And what on earth did she mean by _taunt_?

He suddenly felt very overwhelmed. Blaine needed to come back. Like now.

Since he was pretty sure that wasn't what Bella was trying to tell him, he settled for sitting it in his lap. This seemed to be the right answer, and a satisfied Bella went to fetch something else from her toy chest.

While Bella kept talking about _something_, Kurt nodded and kept up with the most generic answers he could without offending her ("Ooh, how pretty." "Oh, look at that!" "That's very cool."), he let his mind wander a bit. Blaine's behavior tonight made Kurt wonder, not for the first time, just how often Blaine babysat for his aunt. It was clear Bella knew and trusted him. Enough to let her be carried around by him and to talk animatedly with him while she had been so shy initially with Kurt. And why had seeing him clean the house been so adorable to Kurt? He didn't have a chance to pinpoint his feelings there, because Bella came bouncing back with what looked like a big red scarf.

"What's that for?" Kurt asked.

"It's my mahish scarf." She declared.

Kurt thought a moment. "Magic scarf?" He asked carefully. Bella nodded with a smile.

She laid it out carefully on the floor, walking around to tug on the corners so it was completely flat and straight. It was more of a big kerchief, Kurt realized, and it was just big enough for Bella to sit on. "Come sit, Durt." She said. It was the clearest thing since he had met her. Besides the Durt part.

Kurt looked at the square of fabric with a raised eyebrow, but when he looked back at Bella he put up an embarrassed smile. "I don't think I'll fit. It's too little."

Bella looked down at the kerchief as if seeing it for the first time. She scooted over just a little bit, revealing a fringed corner. "You can sit here." She said, patting the corner for good measure.

It really wasn't all that much bigger of a space than before, but Kurt didn't want to upset her, so he carefully situated himself so that he was seated behind her and leaning on one arm. He was also grateful that she was beginning to make more sense. He didn't want to scold Dim anymore. He placed the monkey in between them. "Where are we going?"

Bella thought real hard. "Can we go to tuh park?"

"I think that sounds fabulous. What are we going to do there?"

"We'll go on tuh swings and tuh slides and pway tag."

"And then what?"

"And den we'll go get iced cweam wif spwinkles."

"Who said anything about ice cream and sprinkles, huh?"

Kurt and Bella both looked up in surprise to see Blaine standing in the doorway, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed. He gave Bella a mock glare, but Kurt could see the hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Do _I_ get any ice cream with spinkles, huh?" He teased.

Bella giggled. "No, because you didn't come wif us!"

Blaine stepped inside the room and sat crossed-legged on the floor next to Bella's bed. "So you two are just going to leave me all alone then?" His eyes were wide, as if filled with sudden sadness at the prospect of no ice cream with sprinkles.

Bella didn't even bat an eyelash. In fact she seemed to enjoy making fun of Blaine. "Yep." She stated excitingly.

"You were just going to go without me?"

"Yep." Bella nodded again.

"And just leave me all alone?"

"Mm-hm!"

"With _no_ ice cream _at all?_"

"Yep yep yep!"

Bella seemed to be enjoying her new-found power taunting Blaine. She was smiling and bouncing happily on her spot on the scarf, facing away from him. So preoccupied in telling Kurt all about her favorite ice cream toppings that she didn't notice that Blaine had put his knees up and was hiding his face in his arms. But Kurt saw, and he had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. She did stop and turn around however, when a great, loud pretend-crying noise came from Blaine's side of the room.

She watched him for a moment, then turned around again. Blaine stopped, peeked over his knees, then continued even louder. It was a big, loud _boo-whoo_ kind of noise, that's the only way Kurt could describe it. And it was making him want to laugh uncontrollably.

Blaine peeked again, and Kurt could see that he was smiling too. "Bella," Kurt whispered. "I think Blaine needs a hug."

Bella looked at Kurt, then at Blaine, then at Kurt again. "Go give him a hug." He said again.

Bella seemed to think this was a good idea, or maybe she felt bad for teasing Blaine before. Whatever the reason, she got up from their little rug and moved over to Blaine. She didn't get the chance to give him that hug though, because as soon as she got close to Blaine, he leapt up from his position on the floor and lunged at her with a play-roar, putting his hands up like they were massive paws instead.

Bella, quickly realizing the situation, screamed with laughter and tried to run back to Kurt, but Blaine swooped her up in his arms and held her tight against her wriggling. "I've got you now!" Blaine said, moving to tickle her tummy with one hand.

"Durt! Save me, save me!" The victim cried out amidst giggles and shrieks of laughter.

"Kurt can't save you!" Blaine defiantly cried. He punctuated this statement by wrapping his arms tight around Bella, as if shielding her. "You're all mine now! There's nothing he can do!"

Kurt crawled over to where Blaine was still tickling Bella. He felt very devious at the moment. Plus seeing Blaine be so playful was adorable. And infectious. "Oh, I don't know about that…." Then, without warning, he attacked Blaine's side, right under his ribcage, where he knew for a fact Blaine was _very_ ticklish.

The effect was instantaneous, and Blaine released Bella almost immediately with a bark of laughter, trying to squirm away from Kurt. But Kurt didn't relent, and Blaine was forced on his side, giggling and laughing and trying to push away Kurt's incessant little fingers. "No fair!" He cried out defensively. Kurt moved sporadically, tickling here and there and everywhere. When Blaine tried to wiggle away again, Kurt threw one leg over his knees and pinned him down. He was having way too much fun with this.

"Bella, quick! Help me! We can't let him escape!" Kurt implored Bella, who was more than willing to help Kurt defeat the evil tickle monster. Between the two of them they had Blaine pinned on the carpet, mercilessly tickling him without remorse.

"S-stop it! Leave me alone! This is mutiny!" Blaine managed between bouts of laughter. His loud cackling was infectious. Soon the whole room was filled with Kurt's chuckles and Bella's sweet little giggles.

A few moments later, Kurt finally leaned back and moved his leg off of Blaine's side, breathing heavily. Bella was a little less reluctant, but when she saw that Kurt had stopped tickling Blaine, she settled for leaning heavily on his chest, a great big grin on her face.

"We got you Bwaine." She said a little breathlessly.

Blaine nodded, equally out of breath still lying on the floor. "Yep. You got me. You both did." He turned his head to glare at Kurt. "That wasn't very fair." He reproached teasingly.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Blaine." Kurt said, casually tucking a piece of hair behind his ear. "I was just trying to save Bella from the evil Bwaine monster."

Blaine chuckled at this. He took a deep breath, hands resting on his chest next to Bella, looking up at the ceiling before sitting up sharply. "Well, time to make dinner!"

The last tips of sunlight peeked through the blue curtains on the windows. The counters gleamed with the last rays of the day. The muffled buzz of the movie Blaine put on for Bella could be heard in the other room. Blaine stood at the stove, flicking on the gas for the pot of water that sat on top.

"So what's on the menu, Bwaine?"

"Please tell me that's not going to be your new pet name for me."

Kurt pushed off the counter he was leaning against. "It's not _my_ pet name," he corrected. "Bella came up with that one all by herself." Plus he was getting payback for _pumpkin_. He placed one elbow on the counter next to where Blaine was standing. He rested his chin in his hand. "Are you making spaghetti?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact. Would you mind grabbing the pasta out of the cupboard? I think one box should be fine for the three of us."

Kurt went to the white cupboard where Blaine had gestured. He peeked in for anything resembling a box of pasta. "This one?" He asked, lifting up a blue one.

"Yep." Blaine took it from Kurt and read the instructions on the back.

"Do you not know how to make pasta?" Kurt asked a playfully quiet tone.

"Just making sure." Blaine mumbled without looking up "We're going to have bread with it too." He read for a moment longer, then looked up to see Kurt leaning against the counter with his chin in his hand, smiling at him.

"What's wrong?"

Kurt just shook his head. "Nothing," he sighed. "You're just adorable."

Blaine chuckled. "You think I'm adorable when I cook pasta? With all your cooking expertise, I'm surprised you're not telling _me_ how's it's done-"

"That's not what I meant," Kurt interrupted. "Well, it is kinda, I mean, it's part of the big picture."

When Blaine continued to give him a slightly confused stare Kurt continued.

"I just mean that you here, doing laundry, washing dishes, playing with Bella…." He faltered off when he saw Blaine's eyes twinkle in amusement. "I guess it's just very charming," He tried to finish.

Blaine moved from the counter, smiling now. He wrapped his arms around Kurt's waist, who had also stood up. "Well, it helps when you have a charming housemate." He stated.

Kurt nodded. "That girl is something else, Blaine." He said. "I can see what you mean about the heart-breaker part, but at the same time she is just so cute-"

"I wasn't talking about Bella." Blaine said in a voice just above a whisper.

It was Kurt's turn to blush that evening, and he ducked his head.

He looked back up just in time to see Blaine lean in for a quick kiss. "Now go on in the living room with Bella before she kills us both," Blaine said teasingly, and pulled away.

As if on cue,they both heard a call from the other room. "Durt! You pwomised you'd come watch dis wif me!"

Kurt blinked. "You don't want any help with dinner?"

"Please, Kurt, it's spaghetti, not rocket science. Besides, you did say you would watch Peter Pan with Bella."

"Are you sure?"

Blaine turned away from the stove to face him. "Of course, don't even worry about it. I've got it all covered." He made another move to push Kurt out of the kitchen. "Besides, Bella likes you more anyway."

Kurt didn't move from his spot. "You don't know that."

"Yes I do. Bella told me so. Now go watch Peter Pan."

Blaine was trying to forcibly push Kurt out at this point, and he even succeeded in getting Kurt to turn and face the doorway to the living room, but Kurt dug his heels in, smirking slightly. He was being overtaken by an extremely devious and playful mood, and he couldn't care less.

"What if I don't want to?" He raised an eyebrow in challenge.

"Tough," was Blaine's sturdy answer. "You already helped me with Bella earlier, you don't have to help make dinner too."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Your _Mr. Mom _techniques shall not fool me, Mr. Anderson. You just want all the glory so you can tell your aunt later that you did _everything._"

Blaine leaned to rest his chin on Kurt's shoulder. "Or maybe I just prefer to watch my boyfriend cuddle on the couch watching classic Disney films."

"With someone else? A girl, no less? Blaine, I simply couldn't."

Kurt lowered his head, resting a hand on his heart. "What would people say?" He asked quietly, looking at Blaine through his lashes. It was hard to hide his grin though.

Blaine smirked. "They would deal." He gave Kurt a quick peck on the cheek and gentle swat on the behind. "Off with you. My water's boiling."

Kurt was sitting on the couch next to Bella when he heard Blaine call from the dining room. Bella jumped up almost immediately, but Kurt stayed behind to pause the movie. He followed behind Bella down the hall.

The table was set, and a single pot was resting on a large green potholder. Kurt leaned over the table to peer into the pot. Maybe it was his stomach talking, but that pasta looked good. Blaine was still in the kitchen.

Bella was climbing into her chair. "Cay I has my pit cup?" She asked Kurt.

"Pit cup?" Kurt repeated.

"No," Bella corrected. "_Pit_ cup." She stressed the same word, but it sounded no different to Kurt.

"You want a _big_ cup?" Kurt tried.

"No, my pit cup!"

Blaine came out from the kitchen, placing a pink cup in front of Bella. "_Pink _cup." He clarified.

"That's what I said!" Bella protested. Blaine ruffled her hair. "Just let me grab the bread from the oven and we'll be ready to eat. Kurt, would you mind serving Bella real quick? She doesn't need a whole lot, just a good spoonful should be fine."

"No problem." Kurt was already moving to the other side of the table, where Bella sat.

"Alright, I'll be right back." Blaine disappeared again down the hall.

Kurt grabbed Bella's plate and dutifully delivered a spoonful of spaghetti settling the plate back down.

"Cay has some more?"

"More? Isn't that enough?" The plate had a good-sized amount of food sitting there, Bella should be fine.

"Pwease?"

Kurt glanced back down the hall, then back at Bella, biting his lip. He didn't want to give Bella too much, but he didn't want to bother Blaine any more than he needed too…..

"Alright, but just a _little_ bit more, ok?"

This please Bella and she lifted her plate to Kurt in response.

Then two things happened.

Kurt pulled the pot closer to the edge of the table, and was already grabbing the spoon. He was lifting it over to Bella's plate when he felt his elbow hit Bella's plate, successfully tipping it over. He turned sharply, intending to try to catch the plate before it made a mess on the floor.

His foot slipped, and suddenly there was a surprised yelp from Kurt, a thud on the floor, a crash on the table, leaving one four-year-old in her chair and one seventeen-year-old on the floor, both completely covered in spaghetti, one from a tipped plate, the other from a tipped pot.

A shocked silence followed. Kurt and Bella stared at each other, mouths gaping.

Bella's eyes were wide as saucers. Kurt was pretty sure he looked the same. Then he could hear Blaine's voice coming down the hall.

"Alright, everyone ready to eat? Got the bread right-"

Blaine stopped in his tracks when he saw the two, holding a bowl with a towel wrapped inside it. His eyes flicked to Bella, most of who's spaghetti had landed on the front of her shirt and was now resting sloppily in her lap. He looked back at Kurt, who still hadn't moved from the floor, and, very similar to Bella, had half a pot of pasta splattered all over his clothes. In fact, Kurt was sure there was a noodle in his hair, because it was hanging over his eye. He could feel sauce drip down his nose.

Any other time, Kurt would've been absolutely mortified at the amount of red sauce now covering his shirt and jeans, or that he had noodles in his hair. He might have even been upset about the mess on the floor, or the small amount of pasta dripping over the edge of the dining room table. But this time, he couldn't wipe away the huge amount of guilt that washed over him when Blaine walked in the room and saw the two of them covered in pasta. That Blaine had made, no less. Blaine had left the room for two minutes and he couldn't trust Kurt to do a simple thing like give a four-year-old a plate of food.

So lost was Kurt in his temporary self-loathing that he almost missed when Blaine carefully set the bread bowl at the end of the table. He crossed his arms and held one hand to his mouth, biting his bottom lip as if he was trying to hide something.

Bella looked up at Blaine, then at Kurt, then back at Blaine. She stared at him for a moment, then said, quietly, almost thoughtfully: "Durt fell."

The sudden burst of laughter that exploded from Blaine made Kurt jump. He looked up to see Blaine holding his sides and leaning against the wall, laughing uncontrollably. He had one hand covering his face and his shoulders were shaking.

Blaine finally stood up and walked over to Bella. His eyes were shining with merriment. He bent his knees so he was eye-level with Bella and said, "I guess he did, didn't he?" He started laughing again before he could even finish his sentence. He looked at Kurt almost apologetically, and tried to contain his amusement. "You look good in red." He commenting, grinning as if Kurt were wearing an Armani scarf and not tonight's dinner.

Kurt huffed and pretending to pick a noodle from his shoulder, but he was inwardly relieved, and Blaine's mirth was infectious. He looked up at Blaine and realized that the shorter boy was still trying to contain giggles, his eyes sparkling. Kurt burst into laughter himself, relief washing over him, and the situation seemed to fully hit him.

Blaine and Kurt sat on the floor, laughing until tears ran down their faces. Bella crawled down from her chair. "You has sauce on yo nose." She giggled.

"Well you have some on your nose too!" Kurt countered, and before Bella could further protest, he swiped a fingerful of tomato sauce from Bella's shirt and dropped it on her nose. Bella shrieked with laughter and wiped it off on her sleeve, giggling.

"I think you two have plenty to go around," Blaine cut in, standing up. He looked down at Kurt and Bella, crossing his arms, smiling. "Looks like somebody's getting a bath tonight."

Kurt walked out of the guest bedroom where he had changed in a pair of sweats Blaine let him borrow, using a damp rag to wipe the last of the tomato sauce off his face. "Sometimes I spend the night," Blaine said by way of explanation. Kurt's clothes were in the washer, along with Bella's, and he had also borrowed Blaine's hoodie Kurt saw him wear earlier today. He could hear Blaine start the water for Bella in the bathroom further down the hall, talking animatedly with her.

"Alright now, go ahead and get in. Careful, don't slip. Is that warm enough?"

Even if Bella had been a boy, Kurt would've been a little nervous about giving another person's kid a bath. It wasn't just that she was a girl. Kurt didn't feel right about being that close with a naked child that wasn't necessarily related to him and he had only known for a short while. The fact that Bella was indeed a girl, however, didn't hurt things either. He had never given a little girl a bath before. What if there was some kind of code, a rule book about giving little girls baths that didn't apply to girls?

Blaine didn't seem to mind in the slightest, and Kurt was more than happy to let him handle that chore. He walked down the hall back to the dining room, where most of that night's dinner still lay conspicuously on the floor. He glanced back down the hall, where he could still here Blaine and Bella in the bathroom. Blaine had said he would come back to clean it up after he started Bella's bath, but now Kurt was here, and what would be the point in wasting time?

He scooped up the most he could off the floor onto a paper plate, then did the same thing to the table after setting the pot right side up again. He tossed the plate in the trash, then took another rag from the linen drawer and did his best to wipe down the table and Bella's chair. He had just started wiping up the floor when Blaine walked in.

"Hey, that was my job."

Kurt leaned over his shoulder to glance back at Blaine. "Consider this my reward to you for making a mess in the first place. It was my fault, I should be the one to clean it up." He went back to work.

He saw Blaine walk around and crouch down to Kurt's level. "Seriously, you didn't have to do that. Mr. Mom, remember?"

Kurt looked up from the floor. "Well, it is a comfort to know that if we even end up owning a house together at least you'll know how to keep the place looking somewhat decent." He smirked.

"Yeah, but it's my job, because I'm the one who's supposed to be babysitting, keeping the place clean, and you're supposed to sit there pretty and let me stare at you all day long." Blaine was smiling now too.

Kurt leaned back on his knees. "Blaine Anderson, are you trying to tell me you just want a trophy wife?" He got up to rise out the rag in the sink.

"Who said anything about trophy wife?" Blaine called after him, following Kurt into the kitchen. He turned Kurt to face him, wrapping his arms around the other boy's waist and leaning against the sink. "That would imply two things; One, that you're the girl in this relationship, and two, that I would want to show you off to everyone." His tone was completely serious, but Kurt caught that mischievous glint in his eye. He watched as Blaine leaned in so that their noses were almost touching.

"Don't short change yourself, Kurt," He said between them. "And don't think I'd be so quick to share you." He leaned impossibly closer, till their lips were almost touching. "I have no intention of sharing you with anyone, Kurt Hummel." He whispered.

Kurt was prevented from making any kind of comeback when Blaine's lips met his in a slow kiss. He could feel Blaine's arms tighten around his waist and he found himself melting into Blaine's arms. He let his arms wrap behind Blaine's neck and relaxed into him, enjoying the feeling of being so close to someone he cared about so much.

Then there was a faint splash of water, and a giggle from Bella, and Kurt remembered where he was.

It's pretty bad to be making out with your boyfriend when you're supposed to be babysitting his cousin.

He tried to pull away, but Blaine's grip only tightened, pulling him closer again. He felt one hand roam up his back, anchoring him in place. Kurt's hands drifted to rest on Blaine's shoulders. You know you're a teenager when you risk making out with your boyfriend in the kitchen of someone else's home while someone else's child is talking a bath just down the hall.

Kurt knew he shouldn't really do that, but he couldn't bring himself to care at that moment, because Blaine wouldn't stop kissing him and that hand on his back felt really good and everything about him tonight, from trying to help with the chores to playing with Bella, had been too endearing and adorable to let pass by.

Kurt was finally able to lean back enough to look at Blaine. For a moment the two boys stared at each other, then Kurt pulled away and grabbed the rag from the sink. "If you excuse me, I've got work to do."

Blaine tried to pull him close again, grinning, but Kurt slipped away at the last moment and made his way down the hall, smirking over his shoulder as he went.

Thirty minutes later, Bella was out of the bath and had managed to eat what spaghetti hadn't been dropped on the floor without making a huge mess. Kurt had finished cleaning the floor and table beforehand, so now he moved to take the rest of the dishes to the kitchen. Blaine was still munching on a piece of bread when Kurt asked if he was done.

"Kurt, I told you, you don't have to do that-"

The taller boy cut him off quickly. "Cleaning up after having dinner at someone else's house is called being polite, Blaine."

"But really, Kurt-"

"But nothing." Kurt finished. "You cleaned the house, you made dinner, and now you're job is to sit there and look pretty while I clean up." He finished his statement by taking Blaine's plate and walking purposely back to the kitchen. He heard Blaine chuckle behind him.

"Come on, kiddo, time for bed."

The sounds of chairs scooting back and Bella slipping down from her chair wafted over to Kurt as he started water running in the sink. He quickly rinsed off the remaining dishes under the water, wiping off the last traces of food. He carefully stacked them in the dishwasher next to the other dishes Blaine had done earlier. After looking for the soap under the sink, he shut the lid and pressed the start button. Satisfied with the rumble that greeted him, he turned on his heel and headed out of the kitchen and down the hall just in time to see Blaine quietly slip out of Bella's room.

He closed the door to a tiny crack and carefully walked down the hall to meet Kurt. "Finished already?" He asked quietly.

Kurt nodded. "Did she fall asleep?"

Blaine shook his head. "She wasn't asleep when I finished reading, but I told her I was only going to read one story."

He moved to sit down at the now empty table. His eyes were heavy-lidded, and there was a tired air about the way he rested his chin in his hand, even as he gave Kurt a small smile. Kurt suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion sweep over him, as if it had been waiting until he got a chance to sit down. He dropped down less than gracefully in the seat next to Blaine with a loud sigh.

"It's weird. It doesn't feel like I did anything too crazy, but I'm _exhausted_."

The shorter boy grinned. "It gets to you, huh? One minute you're running around doing everything all at once, the next-"

"You're ready to fall asleep where you stand." Kurt finished. "Is it always like this?"

Blaine's eyes twinkled. "Imagine doing every day, all day."

Kurt let out a groan. "You weren't kidding when you said it was hard work."

He glanced up at the clock on the wall. "When did you say your aunt was coming home?"

Blaine moved his head so he could glance at his watch. "She should be home no later than ten. So we have some time to kill."

Kurt nodded. It was only a little after eight.

Before either one of them could say another word, there was a small sound behind them. Kurt and Blaine both turned around to see Bella standing in the hall, hugging her plush monkey. She was leaning against the wall and her eyes were filled with tears. Her tiny mouth was turned into a trembling frown as she tried not to cry.

Kurt was on his feet in an instant. A thousand thoughts ran through his mind. Was she not feeling well? Had something happened in her room? Was she hurt? He walked over to Bella and bent down to one knee.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" He asked sincerely, scanning her over to make sure she wasn't hurt anywhere. "Did you hurt yourself?"

Bella let out a loud sniff. "I… I…." She started, and Blaine watched as Kurt's eyes were wide with concern, listening carefully to Bella.

"_I want my mommyyyyyyyy."_

She fell against Kurt's shoulder and began immediately crying, tears running down her face as she sobbed loudly.

He froze for a moment. Never, in his entire life, had Kurt ever experienced first-hand something like this. Of course, before tonight he had never babysat either. Not knowing what quite else to do, he wrapped his arms around Bella, hugging her close. It felt like a good thing to do when someone was bawling loudly into your shoulder. He looked back at Blaine with confused eyes. She was fine a minute ago. Why was she missing her mother now? She hadn't mentioned her mom once the entire evening. They were having such a good time. He didn't know what to do.

Blaine walked over and bent a knee by the two of them. "I told you, sweetie, your mom will be back when you wake up. Just like she was last time." Even though Blaine's voice was gentle and sweet, there was a tone to it that made Kurt think this wasn't the first time Blaine and Bella had this conversation. And if that was the case, why didn't Blaine tell him before?

Bella was still bawling into Kurt's shoulder. She turned to look at Blaine, sniffing, and Kurt was momentarily grossed out by the snot on her upper lip and the wet spot on his shoulder. He took a deep breath however, and turned his attention to Bella.

"But-but-but I want her _nooow_." Bella continued to cry, the last word coming out as another sob.

"And she'll be back later tonight." Kurt said, trying to help. "Come on, let's get you back to bed. I promised you a song, didn't I?"

Bella sniffled a little bit, having forgotten about Kurt's promised performance. Truth to be told, so had Kurt, between having tickle fights and spilling the spaghetti. But it all worked out, because now he could use it to get her to go to sleep for real this time.

He took a tissue from the box Blaine had found and gently wiped Bella's nose with it without thinking. He took another one and carefully wiped her eyes. Standing up, he took the younger girl's hand and walked down the hall with her, Blaine following behind.

When they got back to Bella's bedroom she climbed back into her small bed, still sniffling though her bottom lip was trembling as much. Kurt pulled the blankets up to her chin and he saw Blaine behind him make a show of tucking them around Bella's tiny feet. Blaine tickled the tops of her toes through the fabric, earning a quiet giggle from the little girl. Then the two of them settled on the floor in front of Bella's bed, Blaine at the foot, and Kurt in front of Bella.

"What song would you like?" He asked, tucking a stray bit of hair away from Bella's face. He caught Blaine gazing at him when he did so, causing Kurt to blush slightly.

Bella snuggled into the covers, rolling over so she faced Kurt fully. "De peta pan one."

"Peter Pan?"

She nodded.

Kurt thought for a moment. It had been a while since he had seen that movie, and the only song that seemed like an appropriate bed-time song was the one from the beginning…..

He started off quietly.

_The second star to the right_

_ Shines in the night for you_

_ To tell you that the dreams you plan_

_ Really can come true_

Bella had stopped crying now, her eyes watching Kurt as he continued to sing. Little sniffles could still be heard periodically though.

_The second star to the right_

_ Shines with a light so rare_

_ And if it's Never Land you need_

_ It's light will lead you there_

_Twinkle twinkle little star_

_ So we know where you are_

_ Gleaming in the sky above_

_ Lead us to the one we dream of_

He heard Blaine quietly join him.

_ And when our journey is through_

_ Each time we say Goodnight_

_ We'll thank the little star that shines_

_ The second from the right_

Bella's eyes, growing heavier and heavier as the song progressed, finally gave in, and drooped shut. Kurt and Blaine waited a moment, listening to her even breath to make sure she was really asleep. Then they both quietly snuck out, closing the door to a crack in case she woke up again, and slipped down the hall.

They were just a few steps down the hall when Kurt suddenly stopped.

"What is it?" Blaine asked.

Kurt looked up at him. "I wiped Bella's nose earlier."

Blaine looked at Kurt in mild confusion. "Well, yeah, she was crying and that-"

"I mean, Blaine, that I wiped snot off a small child's face and didn't freak out about it."

Blaine stared at Kurt a moment longer, then comprehension slowly dawned on him. He smiled. "Looks like someone's a pro already."

Blaine wrapped an arm around Kurt's waist as they stepped back into the dining room and made their way to the couch in the living room. "I must say," He began. "That was pretty impressive back there."

The two boys plopped down on the couch together. "I'm surprised I could remember that song. Tonight was the first time I've watched Peter Pan in years." Kurt said.

"I didn't mean the song." Blaine said, moving his arm from Kurt's waist to around his shoulders so Kurt could snuggle in closer to Blaine. "You were really sweet with Bella when she started crying."

Kurt looked up from where he had rested his head on Blaine's chest. "Did you know she would do that, by the way? Is that normal for her?"

Blaine shrugged. "I thought she might, but I was also hoping that with you being here she would be too busy to miss her mom."

"Does she do it every time? Cry when it's time for bed? I thought you said you've babysat her before."

"Not every time. It's actually kind of normal for little kids. It's like she almost forgets her mom isn't home because she's having fun or being kept busy."

It did make sense, now that Kurt thought about it. They had a pretty busy evening, and now it's late and dark, Bella's supposed to be in bed when she realizes her mom isn't home to tuck her in. And even though she knows Blaine and likes Kurt enough to play with her, she still wants her own mother. Not that much different from Kurt when he was younger anyway.

He settled himself back into Blaine. "I felt horrible when she started crying though. I thought something bad had happened."

He felt Blaine chuckle against him. "Nah, just being a little girl. Nothing more to it than that."

There was a comfortable moment of quiet. Then Blaine murmured, "You still surprised me though. For never having babysat children before, you didn't do too bad."

"I still spilled the spaghetti. And made you have to give Bella a bath."

Blaine laughed a little louder. "Yeah, but it was worth it. I did say you looked good in red."

Kurt hid an embarrassed grin in Blaine's shirt, chuckling to himself.

It was quiet again, then Blaine spoke up,

"So, what do you think? See why I had to cancel our movie night?"

Kurt smiled. "Oh yes. How could you bare to spend an evening with me when you have someone like Bella waiting here for you?"

Blaine leaned his head back and closed his eyes, smiling. "I knew you'd like her."

* * *

><p><strong><em>Well, there it is! A ridiculously fluffy <em>**_**piece about Kurt and Blaine babysitting. The little one-shot that decided to blow out of proportion. I originally planned this to happen much sooner in the season than when I actually finished it, so it's safe to say this takes place within the first few episodes, pre-"The First Time," since I didn't actually factor any of that story into this piece.  
><strong>_

_**As always, reviews and feedback are MUCH appreciated, especially if there's an obvious mistake or I missed something crucial to Glee/Klaine-Canon. **__**Seriously, I am open to criticism and reviews. Hit me with your best shot.**_

___**Thanks for reading! **_

_**-MermidChck**_


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